In the Cahors region of France, black truffles are almost literally as valuable as gold in the culinary world. Prized for their glorious scent, black truffles are fungi that grow exclusively on the roots of oak trees. Found in late autumn and winter, the truffles cannot be seen since they grow under the ground. Pigs, or specially trained dogs have been used to search for these elusive truffles. About 20% of the French production comes from southwest France, which possesses the limestone soils and dry hot weather that truffles need to grow.

In the late 19th century, an epidemic of phylloxera destroyed many of the vineyards in southern France. Large tracts of land were set free for the cultivation of truffles. Thousands of truffle-producing trees were planted, and production reached the peak of hundreds of tonnes by the end of the 19th century. Wars during the 20th Century decimated the fields. After 1945, the production of truffles plummeted, and prices rose dramatically. In 1900, truffles were used by most French people, and on many occasions. Today, they are a rare delicacy reserved for the wealthy, or used on very special occasions.

Originally a common grape in Bordeaux, Malbec has lost popularity as one of the five varieties in the Bordeaux blends. Meanwhile, Malbec increased its status in the French region of Cahors, an area southeast of Bordeaux, where it creates distinctive wines that now require 70% of the variety.

GrapeRadio is proud to present a look at the Cahors region, as rightly famous for its black truffles as it is for its Malbec, a wine that exemplifies the scent of black.

Thank you for another wonderful and fascinating production. Don’t know if it is just my Internet connection, but the video and audio weren’t quite in sync. No matter, I still enjoyed it very mucy.
Brian Crabtree
Raymond MS

Congratulations, to all those involved, on this spell-binding production. Seeing Cahors – the land, the wines, the truffles – through the lens of terroir makes it even more colorful, even more complex/meaningful, even more (aesthetically) appealing/sensual/delicious. Doing so, making the viewers see Cahors through the lens of terroir in The Scent of Black, means helping them appreciate and better understand the complex interplay and partner-ship existing between man, plant(s) and nature/environment in bringing something unique into the world and our daily life, and teaches one to match the sheer (hedonistic) pleasure of eating/drinking with due profound respect for where our food and wine come from.

Thank you guys.I think it’s one of your best video’s ever along with the stewards of the land.I posted it on FB and to all my friends.It reminds me as a sommelier myself why I love the food and wine trade so much.We cannot do without food and food is in my view one of the wonders of the world.Together with wine makes it a deeply emotional experience.Just to all those people who don’t believe again in terrior,why are the wines black because of the black truffles on the land.It’s nature speaking.Thank you again guys for a beautiful video.Happy new year to all at graperadio.com and may you all have a grape new year.

First time on the site, this video was recommended to me and I find it a lot better than most wine videos out there. Although it is marketing driven, I don’t mind because I feel Cahors deserves some more limelight.

Stunning video that shed light on an area I was not too familiar with. I am loving your site and telling everyone about the quality of your work. Astonishing stuff and I eagerly await the next production.

To all the GrapeRadio crew, congratulations and thank you, not only for the Scent of Black, but all your years of so many excellent, interesting, and educational productions. I know it is a labor of love for you, but I know it also requires tremendous effort and time.

Monthly Archives

Categories

About

GrapeRadio is a wine talk show. Show topics cover issues such as the enjoyment of wine, wine news and industry trends - the hallmark of the show is interviews with world class guest (winemakers, vineyards owners, wine retail / wholesale leaders, restaurateurs and sommeliers). The scope of the show is international so expect to hear many guests from around the world.

GrapeRadio has received numerous awards and honors including the 2008 James Beard Award for excellence in Journalism.

GrapeRadio has been the subject of numerous news reports by: The New York Times, Business Week, CNN, The Financial Times of London, and Wired Magazine.